St Machar Road affordable housing, Aberdeen
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Summary
Helping to meet the demand for affordable housing in Aberdeen
Robertson delivered 138 affordable homes at St Machar Road in Aberdeen, an £18.6 million housing development. A further £4.5m phase is also scheduled, which will provide an additional 34 flats.
In partnership with Hillcrest Housing Association, the project delivers a total of 172 high-quality new apartments for social rent and 35 for mid-market rent. It supports Aberdeen's affordable housing aims and was funded through a Scottish Government grant.
Developing an industrial site
The site – a disused industrial yard – made this an ambitious development. The accommodation comprises four five-storey blocks and one six-storey block, each with a mix of one, two and three-bedroom flats, along with associated car parking and landscaping, improving a redundant site adjacent to existing housing. The sensitive design from architects Halliday Fraser Munro offers strong street frontages to screen homes from neighbouring industrial land, and private south-facing courtyards.
Helping to meet Aberdeen's housing shortage
Aberdeen has a shortage of affordable housing and a development on this scale will have a huge impact on the area. It provides further housing in the long-established residential area of Tillydrone, Aberdeen.
The mix of flats look on to the newly created community garden and have access to a floodlit games area, which is accessed via a tree-lined avenue. This urban development has been faced in a mix of buff brick and metal standing seam.
Improving the experiences of Tillydrone, Aberdeen
Local schools, colleges and universities have benefited from a range of educational visits and activities throughout the course of this development so far. Younger kids heard about a career in construction whilst university engineering and architecture students enjoyed informative talks and presentations. Our site team also enjoyed making a tool bench for Riverbank nursery, while donating materials from the site alongside nuts and screws, promoting 'learn through play' from an early age.
Engagement with the local community also saw architecture students given the opportunity to help shape St Machar's brand-new community garden. The garden design competition got schools, universities and local businesses involved ensuring the garden can be enjoyed by all.
Opportunities for work experience and long-term employment saw many local individuals benefit as a direct result of the St Machar Road development. Alongside this, our site team also participated in numerous fundraising events raising over £600 for Neo-natal Friends of Anchor and Macmillan Cancer. This involved the waxing of several backs, legs and arms as well as a bake sale.
The impact this had on the local community can be seen through the total number of people reached:
- 13 Employability community group activities with 113 people
- 10 Further/Higher Education activities with 332 students
- 29 completed work placements which totalled 103 weeks
- 8 secondary school activities with 1806 pupils
- 9 early years and primary school activities with 1181 pupils
Project team
Architect: HFM
Employers Agent: KLM Partnership
Principal contractor: RPH North
Civil & structural engineer: Fairhurst
